<!–
<!–
<!– <!–
<!–
<!–
<!–
An Adelaide man who was rejected by a supermarket giant before working as a trolley collector has made Australia’s top 250 rich list after building an $827 million empire.
Roger Drake is the founder of independent chain Drakes Supermarkets, which operates 60 stores across South Australia and Queensland.
He came in at number 173 on the list, which was published by The Australian on Friday after revenue for his supermarket chain hit $1.18 billion in 2023, according to documents filed with the corporate regulator.
Sir. Drake bought his first supermarket in Adelaide 50 years ago, which he originally called Jack & Jill’s, and overcame setbacks and even rejection from another grocery giant.
Roger Drake bought his first supermarket in Adelaide 50 years ago, which he originally called Jack & Jill’s before Drakes Supermarkets was born
“I had visions of being a doctor, but my parents couldn’t afford to send me to university, so I applied for a job at Woolworths supermarkets,” he said. SALIVA in 2022.
‘But they said I wasn’t suitable for retail. I went over the road and got a job at Coles – assembling trolleys.’
After rising through the ranks to become a manager at Coles, Drake quit and bought a small shop in Mitcham for $29,000.
“When I made that decision to open our first store, I thought both Coles and Woolworths all started as single-store standalones,” he said.
‘The vision was always to grow the business so that I could compete against the multinational chains.
‘Having one shop and being independent, we had the flexibility to cater for the local community and we brought in a lot of local produce.
‘We made sure we exceeded customer expectations every day we opened our doors.’
He has fallen just short of the list in recent years, but hard work has now earned Mr. Drake back in the ranks of Australia’s rich elite.
Roger Drake built his $827 million empire after being turned down for a job at supermarket rival Woolworths
He has fallen short on the list in recent years, but hard work has earned Mr. Drake back in the ranks of Australia’s wealthy elite (pictured with his son John-Paul Drake)
The supermarket chain’s latest set of financial accounts showed a 3.3 per cent rise in sales last year, with Mr. Drake had a net profit of $36 million.
The richest South Australian on the list was Chris Thomas, owner of Australia’s largest family-owned meat processing company Thomas Foods International.
He came in at number 82 after his meat processing plants in South Australia, NSW and Victoria had sales of more than $2.7 billion.
Gina Rinehart, who is president of Hancock Prospecting, came in at number one after posting a profit of $5.04 billion for the 2023 fiscal year.
The list included 159 billionaires, including 25 new entrants to the ranks, and 20 people aged 40 or younger.